Greyhound buys South Side site amid speculation of Goose Island sale

Greyhound inked a deal last week to buy a South Side property for its new bus maintenance facility, signaling that it could be almost ready to sell its eight-acre slice of Goose Island to a residential developer.

The transit company paid $5.3 million on Aug. 20 for an equally-sized tract of vacant land at 3940 South Normal Avenue, according to the Chicago Tribune. It bought the property from the DiFoggio family, which owns DiFoggio Plumbing & Sewer Contractors.

Vancouver-based Onni Group was in advanced talks in March to buy the 190,000-square-foot site at 901 North Halsted Street, at the southern tip of Goose Island, Crain’s reported at the time. The deal would be for $50 million and up to 1,000 apartments would be built.

Long dominated by industrial plants and warehouses, the 160-acre Goose Island was rezoned to accommodate more retail and office uses as part of the city’s 2017 North Branch Framework plan. Residential development on the island remains off-limits under the new zoning layout — except on the island’s southeast corner, the site of Greyhound’s property.

Still, any large residential development would likely require another zoning change. The property is part of an affordable housing “pilot zone” established last November that would require at least 20 percent of units to be rented below market rate.

R2 Companies, one of the most active property owners on Goose Island, moved its headquarters in June to a rehabbed office building overlooking the Chicago River near Division Street.

Also in June, Onni Group rolled out a proposal for a 356-unit apartment tower at 353 West Grand Avenue in River North. [Chicago Tribune] — Alex Nitkin